How Real Poker Training Works.

It is simple really. You watch a video of top online poker players playing online poker. You see their cards, and listen to them explain what they are thinking as they play (yes there is full audio to accompany the video). Through watching them play and listening to pro’s share their knowledge about playing winning poker, it is an incredible learning tool. Check out the demo videos available for free and then finish reading this review.

Todd Arnold is the featured professional online player in the videos. His handle on Paradise Poker is NSXT2 and he has quite a following at Paradise Poker, if you play tournaments there you’ve probably heard of him. He’s the guy on the right over there. He dominated the tournaments month after month and he has been one of the top 20 ranked online poker players playing. I don’t remember his exact list of credentials but he has well over 40 multi table tournament wins in less than a year and online earnings in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. On top of that, his videos are really, really good.

If you want to take your game to the next level.
Real Poker Training is designed for intermediate and advanced poker players who are looking to take their game to the next level. If you are still fairly new to poker and just want to learn some basic strategy, you might be better served reading through the Texas Hold Em 101 section and just playing some very low stakes poker and get some time under your belt before making an investment in Real Poker Training.

If you are seriously working on your game or if you have hit a plateau and can’t quite break out with a big tournament win or move up to the higher limit cash games then you should certainly consider joining RPT!

What I think of Real Poker Training.

I hope it doesn’t catch on and become too popular (I don’t need the competition at the poker tables!). I’ve only watched a small fraction of the 100+ videos so and I must say I’m very impressed. I think NSXT’s approach and philosophy about the game really hits home, makes sense and is a winning strategy.

For the casual online poker player who only plays whenever there is nothing else to do, the training is probably not worth the investment.

For the more serious poker player, and those of us who enjoy playing poker and are actively looking to improve our game will find this course worth every penny charged and more. Real Poker Training is a sound investment for your poker career. Get the course. I honestly feel that the information shared in real poker training is worth every penny they charge for access if you are serious about improving your poker game.

I’ve only had access to the course since right around Christmas (it was my Christmas present) and I’m 3 for 3 with two 1st place finishes in a couple of $10 Sit-N-Go’s and I was out early in the APC private multi although I was a relatively strong favorite when I got all of my chips in the middle. Yes, I know that is a way too small sample at stakes that are relatively low, but I feel that I’ve already learned enough to improve my game to a point where I will become an even more consistent winner, especially in tournament poker.

Tournament players will love the course.

The majority of the videos focus on tournament play, although there are a handful of videos of playing NL cash game as well. All types of tournaments including multi-tables, sit-n-go’s, rebuy tournaments and heads up play. I’ve already written down a number of poker tips, strategies and ideas that I’ve gleaned from watching a a small handful of available videos. I haven’t even started on the extensive section in text or read through the threads in the forum.

Cash Game Players – great videos, just not a lot of them.

So far, there is only a small handful of cash game videos, especially compared to the huge selection on tournament play. There is only one full session of Todd Arnold playing $5/$10 no limit at Poker Stars. It’s a great video and man I wish he would make some more ;). I will say that $5/$10 NL is well above my bankroll to be playing, so the strategies he uses are probably different than at the much lower stakes that I’m grinding it out in right now. I think the strategies can be better applied at the $2/4 NL game I hope to be playing in and winning in by the 2006 WSOP. There are more videos from another pro, Ryan Fisler who is also a very good online player. In my opinion Todd explains his ideas and thoughts more although Ryan’s videos are also pretty good. I fully admit that I have only watched two of Ryan’s videos yet and I can tell that he is a great player that I have a lot to learn from, I just haven’t spent the time on his videos quite yet. I wish that there were more videos NL cash videos to choose from, from both Todd and Ryan.

While watching NSXT play,
Todd Arnold, aka NSXT (the guy in the banner on the right and above)talks about everything while he is playing. Not only does he talk about his hand, but he talks about everyone at the table. When players are playing too aggressively he will often say that someone is about to catch them in a big hand. It is shocking how often he is right when he expects someone to have a strong hand compared to when he thinks someone is bluffing. More often than not he is dead on the money, he can call out hands or rank hands of opponents based on his read of the table and it is uncanny how often he is dead on. Remember, while he is doing this he is explaining how and why he is coming up with these reads. Yes he is sometimes wrong and when he makes mistakes he can even point out the players at the table who are able to pick up on it and punish him and those who will miss it all together.

Todd also plays a lot of poker while he is tired. He is in the middle of a huge hand, at the final table of a multi or just taking down a huge pot and he can’t keep himself from yawning. These are in final table situations with serious $$ on the line. Situations that would have me on pins and needles, he is not sweating it at all… Final table of a multi table tournament with over $2000 to first place and he can hardly stay awake, haha. Just kidding Todd, I don’t mind the yawns, they are a small price to pay for the knowledge shared. Todd also has at least one dog, as it has made it’s presence known on the videos. Yippy lil mini-dog I say but it’s still better than a cat.

If you’ve read poker strategy books but wish someone would show you in detailed situationals then you’ll like the videos.When you watch someone apply techniques you read about in Dan Harringtons last book it really helps clarify the text. Learning through watching and listening is a different way to learn poker strategy. If you enjoy learning through experiencing something through the action of others then you’ll really like watching the videos. Again, if you haven’t watched the sample of demo videos they have for free on the site, you should.

What games are covered?

I’ve only watched the NL Texas Holdem videos right now but there are videos on Pot Limit Omaha and 5 card draw. Tournaments including heads up tourneys, freeze outs, re-buys, satellites, sit-n-go’s etc… Pick your flavor, but watch them all.

How much does it cost?

There is a one time upfront fee of $129.95 and a monthly recurring fee of $14.95. New content is added every month (or so it seems, I’ve only been a member for a week at the time of this review). They have already added a new video on Omaha and the recurring fee keeps them motivated to keep adding new videos. You can pay via poker room transfer if you want to, which is quick and easy.

Final Thoughts on Real Poker Training

So far I’ve been very impressed with the site and the training offered. A couple of the videos could use a little re-synchronization, as the audio is a little ahead of the video but this is fairly rare. Most videos are smooth and well synched. They also seem to be consistently adding new videos and content, which is good. I have only scratched the surface of Real Poker Training and have already realized that there is a whole lot more that I need to think about if I want to play better poker. I’m glad that I made the investment and am confident that it will easily pay for itself by improving my game.